WASHINGTON -- The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced
today the filing of an
administrative complaint against Timothy Michael Bengson, last
known to reside in St. Louis, Missouri. The CFTC complaint, filed on June
27, 2000, alleges that while a registered associated person (AP) of a
registered futures commission merchant (FCM), Bengson fraudulently
allocated commodity interest trades among customer accounts he handled and
accounts in which he held a financial interest in violation of the
anti-fraud provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA), as
amended. Bengson is not currently registered with the Commission in any
capacity.

Specifically, the complaint alleges that, at various times between June
1995 and February 1997, Bengson engaged in a fraudulent scheme to
misappropriate and allocate trades to the detriment of his customer
accounts and to the benefit of accounts in which he had a financial
interest. The complaint specifically alleges that Bengson allocated trades
throughout the time period, by, among other methods, changing or causing
the account identification to be changed on office and/or floor order
tickets after trades were executed and by instructing the FCM’s back
office personnel to change account identification on trades after those
trades were executed and assigned to customer accounts. The complaint
alleges that during this period, one of the accounts Bengson used in the
scheme had profits totaling approximately $50,000 and that 94 percent of
the round-turn trades made in that account were profitable. The complaint
also alleges that the FCM investigated Bengson’s trading, terminated
his employment, and reported its investigation to the National Futures
Association.

A public hearing has been ordered to determine whether the allegations
are true and, if so, what sanctions are appropriate in the public interest.
Possible sanctions include an order directing Bengson to cease and desist
from violating the sections of the CEA charged, imposing a trading
prohibition, and requiring Bengson to pay a civil monetary penalty as well
as restitution to the defrauded customers.